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Source: Breakfast -
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A public policy expert says the Budget lacks a plan for creating jobs.
The government is banking on forecast GDP growth to deliver around 170,000 new jobs over four years.
But the director of Auckland University of Technology's Institute of Public Policy, David Wilson, told TV ONE's Breakfast the government should not leave job creating to the market.
He recalled a street sign during high unemployed in the 1970s that read: "Unemployment is not working."
"And I think it's not working for us. So more job cuts in the private sector and public sector is not good," Wilson said.
The government believes reducing the deficit and getting the economy back on track will give the market and businesses confidence to grow, and that will create jobs.
But Wilson said the market is not a wise, functioning thing.
"It actually is a reflection of decisions that businesses make in buying and selling and so on. So you really can't leave everything to the market in terms of job creation," he said.
"We need to really focus on what our core competitive advantages are in the world now that we're in a globally competitive world."
While he agreed governments have not been particularly good at job creation in the past, Wilson said it cannot be left to the market.
"If you leave job creation to the market you're actually at the mercy of what the market dictates in terms of your employment."
Wilson said unless there is some kind of economic development plan there is nothing that anyone can ascribe to.
He said an example of this is that the "social contract" is being broken on increasing savings, and that is a bad sign.
Wilson said that when he entered KiwiSaver, he thought he, the government and the employer were each putting in $1.
"And the deal has been reneged upon, so that's not a good sign."
Wilson said he would like to see that there is a partnership between the government, the employer and individuals to increase national savings so the country has more capital available.
He said the government needs to make choices about New Zealand's economic future, for example whether it continues to try to increase productivity in the agribusiness sector, or changes focus towards the fishing industry which the country has a sustainable resource in.
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